Pencil for the line art, Photoshop CS3 for the colors.
Saturday, May 30, 2009
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Baking Cookies With Mom WIP 3
Ok, whew! The comic assignments are done, so I'm back to work on the portfolio. Picking up where I left off, here's the completed line art for "Baking Cookies With Mom" (Previously titled "Mother's Day"). Lots of general tweaks. Cleaned up line work, finished character art, made some corrections to Mom's anatomy, gave her a wardrobe change and turned the nondescript puppy into a pug (I love pugs; they're so adorable and...pugly!).
Next up, colors! Once this piece is done, the next thing I'm going to tackle is my interpretation of a classic fairy tale in a mock book cover format. Should be fun. :)
Next up, colors! Once this piece is done, the next thing I'm going to tackle is my interpretation of a classic fairy tale in a mock book cover format. Should be fun. :)
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Mother's Day WIP 2
Here's the rough draft for the Mother's Day piece:
Mmm, cookies!
There's still a lot to do. Need to put some more stuff in the corner of the countertop--maybe a mixer or some other appliance. I also need to add the tile floor, and of course sharpen and refine the lines on the characters. I'm currently working at 8.5x11, but I'll probably do a final pencil pass at a larger size.
For now though, it's back to work on the comic assignment. I spent today getting all the thumbnails together and fixed up. Tomorrow, I start penciling the first page of the new chapter.
Mmm, cookies!
There's still a lot to do. Need to put some more stuff in the corner of the countertop--maybe a mixer or some other appliance. I also need to add the tile floor, and of course sharpen and refine the lines on the characters. I'm currently working at 8.5x11, but I'll probably do a final pencil pass at a larger size.
For now though, it's back to work on the comic assignment. I spent today getting all the thumbnails together and fixed up. Tomorrow, I start penciling the first page of the new chapter.
Sunday, May 3, 2009
Mother's Day WIP 1
With Mother's Day right around the corner, for my next portfolio piece, I decided to center my idea around "spending time with Mom". I have fond memories of my mom teaching me how to make lemon meringue pies and chocolate chip cookies; working together to make something delicious.
I had a couple different ideas for how to approach the concept:
In the first two, the kids are baking cookies (and making a giant mother's day card in #2) to surprise Mom. I think these are fun ideas, but then I remembered that part of the purpose of this piece was to demonstrate my ability to draw an adult figure in addition to the kids.
In #3, the little girl is breaking an egg into the bowl while the younger brother "supervises", and mom offers guidance (and the puppy waits for treats).
Finally, in #4, mom assists the girl in putting the cookies in the oven while younger brother eats/drips cookie dough in the background.
I've decided to go with 4 since it has a lot of fun elements to it.
Unfortunately, I'm not sure if I'll be able to find the time to finish it before Mother's Day. But we shall see! After all, I didn't expect to finish Polar Pal today. It all depends on my comic schedule. Stay tuned for more progress.
I had a couple different ideas for how to approach the concept:
In the first two, the kids are baking cookies (and making a giant mother's day card in #2) to surprise Mom. I think these are fun ideas, but then I remembered that part of the purpose of this piece was to demonstrate my ability to draw an adult figure in addition to the kids.In #3, the little girl is breaking an egg into the bowl while the younger brother "supervises", and mom offers guidance (and the puppy waits for treats).
Finally, in #4, mom assists the girl in putting the cookies in the oven while younger brother eats/drips cookie dough in the background.
I've decided to go with 4 since it has a lot of fun elements to it.
Unfortunately, I'm not sure if I'll be able to find the time to finish it before Mother's Day. But we shall see! After all, I didn't expect to finish Polar Pal today. It all depends on my comic schedule. Stay tuned for more progress.
Friday, May 1, 2009
Polar Pal WIP 2
I ended up going with my third idea, even though it was the least exciting angle. It occurred to me that painting the aurora borealis in the sky would make for a really nice effect. Thanks to Chan for the inspiration. Your comment about the moon gave me the idea. :)I got the go-ahead on the next comic from my editor, so the colors are on hold for the time being, but at least I got the drawing done. :)
Polar Pal WIP 1
While I'm waiting for the go-ahead to begin pencils for the next chapter of secret-comic-project, I thought I'd work on another piece for my children's illustration portfolio.
The original idea for this one was to have an Eskimo boy encountering a miniature polar bear in the snow. I liked the concept of having a small boy tower over what would normally be a very large animal. The miniature bear came across as confusing though, so in this revised version, the polar bear has been enlarged to make it polar cub size instead.
Jared suggested I work a fish into the composition to add further depth to the scene and give the polar bear cub a reason to approach the boy. So here's where the idea currently is with these three compositions:
Each has a slightly different feel. I'm currently leaning towards the middle one since you get to see both character's faces. But I'm curious to hear other opinions. Does anyone have a favorite?
The original idea for this one was to have an Eskimo boy encountering a miniature polar bear in the snow. I liked the concept of having a small boy tower over what would normally be a very large animal. The miniature bear came across as confusing though, so in this revised version, the polar bear has been enlarged to make it polar cub size instead.
Jared suggested I work a fish into the composition to add further depth to the scene and give the polar bear cub a reason to approach the boy. So here's where the idea currently is with these three compositions:
Each has a slightly different feel. I'm currently leaning towards the middle one since you get to see both character's faces. But I'm curious to hear other opinions. Does anyone have a favorite?